After most likely losing Lucas Giolito to a season-ending injury, the Boston Red Sox are down to one starting pitcher.
Nick Pivetta, Kutter Crawford and two other of Boston's bullpen options will likely round out the rotation for the coming season. But a former Sox pitcher has expressed interest in coming back to Boston to help the cause.
Rich Hill, who has spent five years with the Red Sox over his 19-year MLB career, is interested in a reunion with the club.
Hill is the oldest currently active player in MLB at 43 years old, and he'll be 44 on March 11. He was born in Boston and attended Milton High School. The Red Sox have been Hill's longest-tenured club and he's played with 12 other teams over the course of his career.
Former Red Sox pitcher and Boston native Rich Hill interested in a reunion
But Hill isn't ready to hang up his spikes just yet. The veteran and journeyman feels he still has more to give.
Hill spent his 2023 season with the Pirates and Padres and pitched to a 5.41 ERA over 146.1 innings with 129 strikeouts.
Rich Hill is on the Red Sox broadcast.
— Gabrielle Starr (@gfstarr1) March 6, 2024
On whether he’d like to return to the team: “I mean, yeah, definitely interested… especially from the players standpoint.”
While the Red Sox can afford to be picky with their starting pitching options, after being forced to eat Giolito's contract money, there's little-to-no chance of the team spending any significant amount of cash. The soon-to-be 44-year-old wouldn't be the best option for Boston to repair its rotation, but as signing Jordan Montgomery seems increasingly unlikely, he might be a fine solution. Hill is an experienced arm with games at Fenway Park under his belt and proper exposure to Boston fans. He wouldn't eat as many innings as a healthy Giolito or Montgomery would, but he would be a good cheap option for a club reluctant to spend any significant amount of money.
Hill could also serve as a veteran mentor presence to the Red Sox's relatively inexperienced rotation. Boston is a young team and few of its potential starting pitchers have long-term starting experience. Hill is the longest-term starter in the game — he could likely offer the Sox's arms some quality advice.
While the Red Sox have options to fill the rotation at their disposal, like Josh Winckowski and Tanner Houck, neither of them has shown the longevity Hill can provide.
Hill would serve as an inexpensive innings-eater and mentor, and he would surely like to retire in a Red Sox uniform in his hometown ballpark.